Retail Management: Principles and Practices

Indian retail business is undergoing dramatic transformation. The retail sector is characterized by a high degree of fragmentation with over 5 million outlets. Due to their small size, and unlike retailers in developed countries, Indian retailers have very little bargaining power vis-à-vis the manufacturers. In the emerging scenario, traditional formats of retailing (like hawkers, grocers, and paan shops) are now co-existing with modern formats like supermarkets and non-store retailing channels, such as multi-level marketing and teleshopping. The structure of India's retail sector has an enormous influence on marketing strategy and marketing activities of firms. The Indian retail sector has arrived at a very critical stage. Stores in modern formats have emerged in the metropolitan cities, but the bulk of the retail sales still take place through traditional retail formats. The development of modern retailing is of great interest to marketing scholars, practitioners, and policy makers. The emergence of new formats of retailing has attracted the attention of government functionaries, company managers, and economic analysts. This book analyzes the developments in retailing in India. It consists of 20 papers authored by scholars in the field. This work will appeal to all categories of readers, particularly students of business management, economics, and commerce; company executives; government officials; and non-governmental organizations monitoring developments in the Indian economy.